Borno State government to build trenches around villages to stem Boko Haram attacks

BORNO State government officials plan to construct trenches around vulnerable villages across the state to forestall and prevent impending and future attacks by Boko Haram insurgents.

 

Over recent weeks, life is gradually returning to normal across Borno State as the Nigerian Army has successfully dislodged the insurgents from the many villages and towns that they hitherto held. At the start of 2015, Boko Haram controlled about 14 local government areas in Borno State but now, do not control any and people have gradually begun returning to their homes.

 

Although Boko Haram may have been defeated militarily, it still has the capacity to carry out bombings, most of the time using suicide bombers. It also carried out sporadic raids on remote villages, raiding for supplies and then burning down such settlements after murdering everyone in sight.

 

Over the last week, Borno State governor Kashim Shettima has been visiting villages across the state to assess the damage done to the communities by insurgents. While condemning the attacks during the visit, he assured the villagers that proactive steps would be taken to safeguard their lives and property in the future.

 

Governor Shettima said: “We will construct trenches around the entry points to prevent the terrorists from carrying out attacks. We will also fortify the areas by providing more security personnel to watch over the areas."

 

He said his government was concerned about the attacks on the communities and assured them that individuals who lost their houses or relatives would be assisted. Governor Shettima further expressed optimism that the problem of insecurity would soon be a thing of the past.

 

Mallam Bulama Dawari, the district head of Ari Dawari, one of the communities attacked by the insurgents, said: “Our village is just 3km from Maiduguri, the state capital but we are not safe. The insurgents carry out their attacks on our community at will and my people are already packing their belongings to leave.

 

“Our community is made up of farmers who depend solely on subsistent agriculture. However, without adequate security, we will have to leave because our lives are no longer safe.”

 

He, however, said that the villagers would stay if more troops are deployed to the area to safeguard their lives and property. President Muhammadu Buhari made ending the Boko Haram insurgency by the end of 2015 one of his main priorities and last week, the government said that it believes that by and large, the terrorists have been defeated.